Reflecting on the institutional processes for college success: The experiences of four Chicanos in the context of inequa
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e fl e c t i n g o n t h e i n s t i t u t i o n a l processes for college success: The experiences of four Chicanos in the context of inequality
L o u i e F. R o d r í g u e z a , E du ardo Mosqueda b , P e dr o E . Na v a c and G i lbert o Co n chas d a
California State University, Upland University of California, Santa Cruz c University of California, Los Angeles d University of California, Irvine b
Abstract The education crisis facing the Latino community in the United States has received considerable attention. Recognizing the demographic growth, low-educational attainment levels, high dropout rates and low college attendance rates among Latinos, research suggests that Latino males specifically are struggling. In recognition of the various factors that shape the disparity in Latino male outcomes, this article aims to focus on the experiences of four low-income Chicanos within the US context. Our counter-narratives demonstrate that beyond “ganas,” key institutional processes, practices and policies shaped our experiences, providing a complex analysis of Latino student mobility from kindergarten to college and career. Latino Studies (2013) 11, 411–427. doi:10.1057/lst.2013.24 Keywords: Chicanos; Latinos; Latino males; college success; inequality
© 2013 Macmillan Publishers Ltd. 1476-3435 Latino Studies www.palgrave-journals.com/lst/
Vol. 11, 3, 411–427
Rodríguez et al
The Looming Crisis The education crisis facing the Latino community in the United States has received considerable attention. For instance, a US Department of Education report recognized that given the demographic growth, low-educational attainment levels, high dropout rates and low college attendance rates among Latinos, a serious “call to action” is necessary (US Department of Education and White House Initiatives for Hispanic Excellence in Education, 2011). Within this crisis, a burgeoning area of research has addressed the “vanishing” Latino male in higher education (Saenz and Ponjuan, 2008). In the United States, where the American paradox of inequality and opportunity looms, research suggests that Latino males specifically are struggling (Rios, 2006; The College Board, 2010). While recognizing the various factors that can account for the disparity in Latino male outcomes, such as culture, peers and labor market demands (Saenz and Ponjuan, 2008), this article aims to focus on the experiences and narratives of four low-income Chicanos within the context of the American dilemma. Although we are four professional Latino males now, as children we experienced social inequality first hand as witnesses and recipients of the counterproductive policy initiatives of the Reagan era (Miron, 2002), yet we managed to navigate the complex system of higher education. Rather than falling into a narrative about our resiliency or “ganas” as the sole explanation of our college mobility, we believe the explanation deserves much more complexity and nuance. In fact, extant research on the success and failure of Chicano/Latino students in the kindergarten through h
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